Surrey schools Christmas pudding

I seem to be sharing a series of Christmas pudding recipes. This may sound an unlikely recipe but it makes an exceedingly good pud, although you may have to scale back the quantities, unless you need several to take you through the season. This recipe is from my mother-in-law’s school cookery book – she was head of the kitchens of Surrey schools in the 1950’s-60’s and they issued her with a wonderful recipe book:

Christmas Pudding

• 3 lbs flour
• 3 lbs breadcrumbs
• 3 lbs beef suet
• 3 lbs currants
• 3 lbs raisins
• 3 lbs sultanas
• 3 lbs raisins
• 1 lb mixed peel
• 2 lbs brown sugar
• 1 lb treacle
• 1½ lbs dried milk
• 2 oz mixed spice
• 1 oz ground nutmeg
• 1 oz salt
• 6 eggs
• rind and juice of 1 lemon and 1 orange
• water to mix

1. skin, shred and chop suet
2. mix the dry ingredients together
3. add liquids and mix thoroughly to a soft consistency
4. put into greased tins with lids
5. steam for at least 5 hours

What strikes me – apart from having to skin, shred and chop the suet, is how rich it is, how comparatively cheap  the ingredients must have been. and whether that tiny amount of spice – 3 ounces for 26 pounds and 12 ounces plus 6 ounces of other ingredients plus six eggs, would have even been detectable, even by the most discerning of taste buds! Ditto juice and rind of one lemon and one orange! Also if school lunch was at a time between 12 o’clock and 1 o’clock, preparing it all and then steaming for 5 hours must have meant that most of it was done the day before then re-heated.

I wonder if I have time to do a reduced pudding before Christmas Day on Wednesday?!